Event Title
Shore Friendly in the Salish Sea: Lessons learned from working with homeowners and real estate professionals
Presentation Abstract
Shoreline habitat conditions are important for forage fish, juvenile Chinook and other species using the nearshore throughout the Salish Sea. Shoreline bulkheads and other armor have been installed for decades and we now know that these can cause significant impacts to nearshore habitat function. While regulatory programs such as Shoreline Master Programs provide a mechanism for reducing the construction of new armor in Puget Sound and Straits, for most existing armor a voluntary approach for reducing or removing armor (and considering alternatives) is needed at this time. The National Estuary Program Nearshore Grant Program has funded a multi-incentive Shore Friendly social marketing program in order to change the social norm and motivate behavior change of waterfront property owners when it comes to shoreline armor. In 2015, San Juan and Kitsap Counties were among the five on-the-ground projects which have piloted these techniques. Both projects include a suite of incentives ranging from financial, technical site visits, and permit assistance. Big lessons have been learned thus far in these pilots reflecting the need to be willing to be nimble, responsive and open to learning that your assumptions were wrong. A major shift in our work involved messaging: we initially thought we would be using terminology and approaches based on the foundational research but we quickly learned that we needed to adjust our wording. Other factors that led to changes in our approaches have been increased knowledge of the receptiveness of homeowners to county-led efforts, learning what real estate agents really want to know, and communications within our jurisdictions. Overall, the projects have worked well but success has been built on the willingness of implementers to change course, act quickly and think outside the box.
Session Title
Moving beyond education and outreach to behavior change
Conference Track
Engagement
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2016 : Vancouver, B.C.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
2016 12:00 AM
End Date
2016 12:00 AM
Location
2016SSEC
Type of Presentation
Oral
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Shore protection--Washington (State)--Puget Sound; Shorelines--Washington (State)--Puget Sound; Coastal zone management--Washington (State)--Puget Sound
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Puget Sound (Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Shore Friendly in the Salish Sea: Lessons learned from working with homeowners and real estate professionals
2016SSEC
Shoreline habitat conditions are important for forage fish, juvenile Chinook and other species using the nearshore throughout the Salish Sea. Shoreline bulkheads and other armor have been installed for decades and we now know that these can cause significant impacts to nearshore habitat function. While regulatory programs such as Shoreline Master Programs provide a mechanism for reducing the construction of new armor in Puget Sound and Straits, for most existing armor a voluntary approach for reducing or removing armor (and considering alternatives) is needed at this time. The National Estuary Program Nearshore Grant Program has funded a multi-incentive Shore Friendly social marketing program in order to change the social norm and motivate behavior change of waterfront property owners when it comes to shoreline armor. In 2015, San Juan and Kitsap Counties were among the five on-the-ground projects which have piloted these techniques. Both projects include a suite of incentives ranging from financial, technical site visits, and permit assistance. Big lessons have been learned thus far in these pilots reflecting the need to be willing to be nimble, responsive and open to learning that your assumptions were wrong. A major shift in our work involved messaging: we initially thought we would be using terminology and approaches based on the foundational research but we quickly learned that we needed to adjust our wording. Other factors that led to changes in our approaches have been increased knowledge of the receptiveness of homeowners to county-led efforts, learning what real estate agents really want to know, and communications within our jurisdictions. Overall, the projects have worked well but success has been built on the willingness of implementers to change course, act quickly and think outside the box.
Comments
co authors:
Authors: Heather Trim (Futurewise), Susan Key (SJC), Kathleen Peters (KC), Rachel Williams (NWC), Kathlene Barnhart (KC), Christina Kereki (KC), Kirvie Mesebeluu-Yobech (KC), Renee Johnson (WSU), and Jeff Adams (SG)